Louisville, KY – A Jefferson County grand jury has found none of the three officers involved in the death of Breonna Taylor worthy of a crime. The grand jury did, however, indicted Louisville Metro Police Department officer Brett Hankison on three counts of wanton endangerment for shooting into a neighboring apartment. Judge Annie O’Connell announced the findings on Wednesday.
Sergeant Jonathan Mattingly and Detective Myles Cosgrove were not charged.
On Monday, Louisville police declared a state of emergency ahead of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s announcement. A 72-hour curfew has been announced as federal buildings were boarded up, and Homeland Security made it’s way into Louisville in anticipation of the announcement. The curfew takes effect at 9 pm and lasts until 6:30 am.
Taylor’s death has sparked outrage among George Floyd protesters who took to the streets to protest police brutality and what they saw as the unjustified killing of Taylor.
Taylor, 26, was killed shortly after midnight on March 13 when three police officers used a battering ram to enter her Louisville home to investigate allegations of drug trafficking. Fearing a home invasion, her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired a gun at the officers, who fired back striking Taylor.
Walker was initially charged with attempted murder of the officers, but charges were later dropped.
Taylor’s family was recently awarded a $12 million settlement for a wrongful death lawsuit they filed against the city of Louisville in April.
More unrest is expected to follow today’s announcement.
